Welcome to Topsail Adventures

It’s been a lovely day’s sailing, our pilotage cut the mustard and we’ve snuck into port just before the “Harbour Full” sign went up. But before we can take a sip of something ice-cold and refreshing we’ve still got to get the boat alongside and tied up safely. As this series on close-quarters boat handling draws to a close, Skipper Nic turns an eye to that final piece of the puzzle – getting alongside without becoming that evening’s gossip in the harbour-side taverns…

We are increasingly cheered by the rapid progress that is being made by the NHS vaccination teams and are really hopeful that 2021 will be the year that we finally are able to get out sailing again with our lovely guest crews! However, we do note that there may still be some disruption to our sailing schedule in the early months of the 2021 season, and with this in mind here’s an update to let you know what we’re doing about Covid-19, and to confirm our Covid-19 cancellation policies and other plans.

Skippered Charter is back! But continuing restrictions mean that "business as usual" is simply not an option for the rest of the year. However, we're sailors, and sailors are versatile right? But money is tight and if we get this wrong we might lose the wind, and have to swallow the anchor for ever. It's all sooo confusing - but be calm shipmates, we have a plan...

With the restart of Skippered Charter confirmed on 4th July but social contact restrictions still in place, Topsail Adventures has today launched our "Build Your Own Adventure" Season. Book the whole boat for a simple daily fee and your household of up to six people can set sail as the temporary "owners" of your very own Scillonian Pilot Cutter! Where from? Where to? How long? You decide!

It’s been a weird month it really has. We began full of hope – about to move the boat up to Gosport for her annual lift-out as we entered final preparations for the 2020 season. Now, as April draws to a close, we’re locked-down on the Beaulieu River, down-rigged with the Winter covers back on, wondering if there will be any sailing at all this year.

With much less fanfare than is usual, and earlier than ever before, we have today launched Amelie Rose’s 2021 Sailing Schedule. COVID-19 has been interfering with this year’s summer so we thought that folks might appreciate the opportunity to look ahead to happier times when the lockdown and social distancing will (hopefully) be just bad memories.

As I write this, COVID-19 continues to ravage lives, economies, and our sailing schedule. While much is still unclear, some news has emerged – very little of it positive unfortunately. I’ve collected together the various updates in this article and will bring you any further news via the website and on our Facebook feed as they happen.

It’s been a few years since we did a longer cruise to the Channel Islands and we’ve been getting withdrawal symptoms – especially since spending time there on our Clean Seas Odyssey and visiting every year for our work with the Set Sail Trust. With this in mind, when a gap opened up towards the end of the year, we thought it high time that we take the opportunity to schedule a proper visit once more.

Gliding, warping and winding sound more like the pastimes of a pilot, a Star Trek fan and a horologist but as the Skipper points out, they’re techniques that can also come in handy when manoeuvring traditional long keel vessels around a harbour too. This time they continue their series on close quarters boat handling under engine by looking at ferry gliding and a couple of rope tricks.